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Onmitsudō
Onmitsudō (隠密術, Way of Onmitsu; literally "Way of Secrecy") is a Hakuda style that specializes in unconventional warfare and assassination, valuing the kill of one's enemy above all else. It can be considered the ancestrial martial art of modern Ninjutsu. Only those that have mastered this martial arts are permitted to join the ranks of Onmitsukidō. Overview Simply put, the true nature of Onmitsudō is deception. While most conventional martial arts emphasize facing the opponent head-on in physical confrontation, boasting tenets of honor in battle, there is none of that in Onmitsudō. It is an art of assassination, where the kill of the target is of the utmost importance over all else, even the lives of one's comrades. The warrior waits until the time is right, keeping their hearts still and cold as ice, waiting for the moment when the enemy reveals an opening, a master of Onmitsudō strikes them down mercilessly without allowing even an iota of hesitation to cross their minds. The art is founded upon these absolute ideals and does not negotiate whatsoever. Should a comrade be in danger of being struck down by the enemy, the Onmitsudōka must attack from behind and slay their enemy. It is an art that forbids "all-out war", instead praising strategy and espionage above all else. It is divided into four principles that are taught to practitioners of Onmitsudō. They were given the name, Shihō (四楓, literally "Four Maple"), as it is suggested that the Shihōin Clan were the ones to have first crafted the pure nature of assassination into an actual martial art. The First of the Shihō (四楓の壱, Shihō no Ichi) is the principle of stealth. The assassin's first and foremost necessity should be to find a way of taking out the enemy without ever being discovered; their presence never being registered. Therefore, the First of the Shihō deals with techniques to engage the target without being captured nor discovered. More specifically, it deals in the art of walking. This deals exclusively with footwork, defining three forms of walking: normal steps, shuffling steps, and stealth steps. Shunpo falls under shuffling steps, as the technique itself is when the user shifts their movements forward so as to cover a larger length of distance than normal steps would have allowed. However, the problem that lies with Shunpo is that it contradicts Onmitsudō. The noise made by the flash can be picked up by a skilled opponent, which announces the user's position and even allows the enemy to assume the speed at which they are moving. When an enemy gains this information, it becomes almost impossible to move without being recognized. Most Shinigami are stuck at the second level of footwork when using conventional footwork. However, in Onmitsudō, a warrior learns the third level: stealth steps. The most basic expression of this is called Muho, translated as "empty steps" or "no steps", it gets that name from its nature of allowing an Onmitsudō to move without making any form of sound. But it goes further than this. Muho is a technique that makes it possible to eliminate vibrations made in the reishi around the user, which when coupled with a lack of sound, makes it impossible for even the most skilled opponents to anticipate the warrior's motions. In doing so, they have succeeded in entering a realm of stealth so as to defeat the enemy without ever being discovered. The Second of the Shihō (四楓の弐, Shihō no Ni) is the principle of concealment. The Third of the Shihō (四楓の参, Shihō no San) is the principle of evasion. If it becomes impossible to hide one's presence and it means that the assassin must engage the enemy directly, the deceptive nature of Onmitsudō requires one to be a master of the art of evading an enemy's attacks, so as to take advantage of potential windows of opportunity for counterattack. In other words, an assassin can use the art of evasion to force an enemy to make a mistake and to make openings for which the Onmitsudō user can deal a decisive blow. The Fourth of the Shihō (四楓の四, Shihō no Shi) is unknown. History Techniques All of Onmitsudō is predicated upon four principles: stealth, concealment, evasion, and an unknown fourth. These four are separated into distinct categories of which all of Onmitsudō's techniques are listed. First of the Shihō Second of the Shihō Third of the Shihō Fourth of the Shihō Known Users Behind the Scenes